Editor's note: This corrects an earlier version

In the latest estimate of the Massachusetts casinos' impact on Connecticut casinos, Fitch Ratings reported Friday that profits at Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun could decline by a combined $136 million in the Massachusetts' casinos first full year of operation - 2017 at the earliest.

The credit rating agency said the casinos that MGM Resorts International and Wynn Resorts are licensed to build in Springfield and Everett, respectively, "will likely cannibalize revenues" from the Connecticut casinos.

"Foxwoods should feel a greater impact, since about 32 percent of its customers come from MA, versus 18 percent for Mohegan Sun," Fitch analysts wrote in an online newsletter.

The analysts project that Foxwoods' EBITDA - earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization - could decline by 52 percent, or $79 million, in the first year, while the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority's EBITDA could fall by 21 percent, or $57 million.

Given the prospect of such losses, Connecticut legislators and representatives of the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes - owners of Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods - have begun talking about the possibility of launching a third Connecticut casino near the Massachusetts border.

"If they're going to do something, that's the logical place for a turf war over customers," Alex Bumazhny, a Fitch analyst, said. "Hartford would strategically make sense."

The tribes turn over 25 percent of their slot-machine revenues to the state.

A private meeting arranged by state Rep. Stephen Dargan, D-West Haven, co-chairman of the legislature's Public Safety and Security Committee, was scheduled to take place Friday.

The Connecticut casinos could feel even more pressure if and when the Massachusetts Gaming Commission issues a license for a casino in the Bay State's southeastern region, where a tribal casino could also be approved. The commission announced new deadlines this week for its two-phase application process. Initial applications are due Jan. 30, with applicants that survive background checks and a "suitability" process required to submit final applications by May 26.

The commission anticipates awarding the southeastern Massachusetts license in the fall of 2015. Foxwoods and/or Mohegan Sun could decide to apply.

b.hallenbeck@theday.com

Twitter: @bjhallenbeck